Digital all the way!By Scott on 5/7/2014

Scott would recommend this product to a friend

I've had many phosphate test and matching colors is always hit or miss. Having a true digital reading is great . As people have said use both vials -makes the testing much easier. The packets are a bit of a pain- you have to be careful when cutting and adding them into the vial. Overall, I feel this is the best phosphate tester for the money

Not badBy Matt on 4/17/2014

Matt would recommend this product to a friend

Nice little gadget. 10 times easier to use than a normal test kit. The only two problems are: is extremely difficult to get the reagents into the test tube, and sometimes the automatic display shut off can ruin a test by exiting before you can see the results.

Great productBy wingon 4/16/2014

wing would recommend this product to a friend

Testing phosphate with simple procedure. No color matching guess.

Easy and Precise measurementBy GUniton 4/3/2014

GUnit would recommend this product to a friend

This is the easiest and quickest test kit for phosphate that I've used. I'm a sucker for precision and not having to guess at colors so this test kit is ideal for that.

The couple of recommendations that I would have for people buying/using this test kit are:

1) When doing the test use BOTH vials. This is key to avoid having the meter turn off on you while you combine the reagent with the sample (2 minute shake time vs 2 minute auto shutoff.... :( ) Fill both with the appropriate amount of sample. Set one aside with the cap on. Add the reagent to the second and begin the 2 minutes mix/shake. About half way into the shake drop the first non-reagent sample into the meter and calibrate. After you're done shake drop the vial with reagent in an get a reading!

2) Buy more reagent immediately (or shortly thereafter) as you only get 10ish reagent packets in the kit.

AwesomeBy Davidon 3/25/2014

David would recommend this product to a friend

This a great meter,I am color blind so these types of meters are a must.

Wow!By the shackon 3/22/2014

the shack would recommend this product to a friend

this is a great meter being in the wastewater industry this meter is just as good as any desktop meter you can buy. They must have reprogramed these meters because mine times out after three minutes which is more than enough time to analyze a sample. The packets they supply are hard to use, however, the reagents out of the box you can buy are fantastic. This is great easy way to measure phosphates accurately, affordably, and fast. Good bye I say to the days of guessing which color is closer for 60 dollars this and a box of reagents are the best invesment for the money you can buy for a sps tank.

Hanna phos checkerBy guyon 3/18/2014

Beats trying to compare to a color chart which you can not see a difference in. Digital readout is great

once again great phos test but not enough reagentsBy jeffon 2/28/2014

jeff would recommend this product to a friend

easy to use. simple to read.

but nowhere does it mention the lack of reagents on the info page. forget that for $50 they could toss in more tests. even if they toss in thirty tests and charge you $60, id be okay with it cus the test is worth it. but i placed a $400 order and could have got the additional reagents with free shipping if it just mentioned that it was needed. but now i had to pay for addition shipping.

just feels kind of busch league for such a great product bought from such a great company.

Outstanding By Ourisland42on 2/20/2014

Ourisland42 would recommend this product to a friend

Unbelievable! Best money spent. Spend the extra money you will not regret it. Yes the reagent packets can be difficult at first..... I just cut off one corner off the packet (small opening) and tap the powder into the glass container. Works every time for me. No more color wheel / charts! I keep the old color wheel around to remind me of the difficulty / guess work I previously had. When it is time to reorder reagent packets, one look at the color wheel and I don't mind spending the extra money on the packets. Buy larger quantities to save money. No more guessing. As always, LOVE the BRS experience!!!

SurprisedBy Mikeon 2/19/2014

Mike would recommend this product to a friend

I love having this tester. The other tester I used I had to compare colors. Now I just have to read the digital number. It gives me a more accurate reading then my guessing what color it is.

Easy to UseBy Matton 2/17/2014

Matt would recommend this product to a friend

The Hanna Phosphate checker is very easy to use and does all the work for you. Works for most, but be cautious if you are an SPS junkie and/or looking to run an ultra low nutrient setup, as this checker has a margin of error of up to +/- .04The actual piece of equipment is great, however the reagent is a different story. The packets aren't really user friendly and only six packets come with your order.

Very Simple to UseBy Timon 2/15/2014

Tim would recommend this product to a friend

I can't really say much else. This just works. I should have purchased additional reagents.

decentBy shaneon 2/13/2014

shane would recommend this product to a friend

does the job, may have fluctuations in readings. Only comes with three reagent packs.

Great, but buy more regent right awayBy Mtthbrookon 2/9/2014

Mtthbrook would recommend this product to a friend

Product works great and is easy to use but your going to need more reagent than they include so you may as we'll order the 25 pack from brs at the same time

ExellentBy Arnaudyson 2/6/2014

Arnaudys would recommend this product to a friend

This is the first time that I own one of this test kit, I`m so happy that I bought Hanna Checker. After testing with and seen the results I went ahead and order the Alk and Cal. I would encourage serious reefer in the hobby to get one of this. Price wise, little big expensive but well worth it. Over all awesome test kit, well don by Hanna checker. I only wish they had a test kit for Mg as well... Reefers out there with phosphate problems don`t waste time and money in guessing what the result is, you might have a lot of money and time invested your tank, you need to make sure and not guess.

The design needs improvementBy Johnon 2/1/2014

John would recommend this product to a friend

For context, I am relatively new to the hobby and cannot compare this checker to the alternatives - either for ease of use or accuracy.

What I will comment on are the two weaknesses raised by others: the very short timeout, and the reagent packets.

The unit will timeout too quickly between the two measurements. In measuring two water samples, I had to redo one because I took a little too long before returning the sample w/the reagent. This seems excessive. Another reviewer has suggested using one bottle for the plan sample and the other for a sample + reagent so you don't have to wait - I shall definitely try this.

On to the reagent packets: Other test kits I have used contain small bottles of reagent + a measuring spoon. If the thought behind the packets is to avoid inaccuracy due to the amount of reagent scooped out with a measuring spoon, I can't believe the packets are much better - by the time one has completely opened the packet to see if any is lurking in a corner, any extra might be spilled or you suffer from the timeout. There is a video on the manufacturer's website (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8e_EOWAkLTc#t=26) which shows a different way of opening the packets (cut on two adjacent sides, rather than just along the top as indicated on the packets themselves). I have yet to try their method, but it may help.

Finally, I second the suggestion that you should order more reagent packets when ordering the checker. It comes with 8 packets, which will not likely translate into running 8 complete tests.

Simple to UseBy Toddon 1/26/2014

Todd would recommend this product to a friend

For those looking to get an accurate reading this checker is extremely easy to use as well as accurate. For those who are keeping SPS this is a must have.

No more color chartsBy Marioon 1/23/2014

Mario would recommend this product to a friend

Works great. Wish there was a liquid reagent, but had no problems using this right out of the box.

Easy to use and well madeBy chrison 1/15/2014

chris would recommend this product to a friend

I really like the Hanna Checker. It is very easy to perform the tests. I still wish it was a little more accurate. The instructions say to expect a +/- .04 result variance. When you are trying to maintain as close to 0 as possible it seems kind of useless if your results can be between 0- .04.

Great testerBy Matton 1/14/2014

Matt would recommend this product to a friend

Yes, there are some complaints about this test. If you take your time and have a little patience it will work out fine. The results are well worth a little learning, you get a digital readout with the numbers instead of trying to match up the color to a chart which may or may not match. You will want to order the refill packets as well, you will need them anyways. A great piece of gear.

The good, the bad and the uglyBy Davidon 12/16/2013

David would recommend this product to a friend

The good news is the Hanna Checker is nicely packaged and easy to use. The bad is that I have to repeat the test because I keep getting error messages. The ugly part is that they don't provide enough of the test powder packets and they are difficult to open. I may be getting inconsistent results because I am getting differing amounts of test powder in the test vials.

Buy a refill right off the bat.
Fill one vial with a clean water sample and another with the powered or the checked can time out on you.

Good tool but fell a bit short on execution.

No way I am going back to another tester.

Needs more reagent and better packagingBy Jaculuson 12/11/2013

Jaculus would recommend this product to a friend

My first non-5 Star rating here. Like others have said the packet is a PITA! Really its ridiculous to expect us to use those packets. I know they have the video that shows how to use the packets and the tricks,, why not just ship it differently. Also as many have said, shipping this with only 6 packets is a JOKE.

Otherwise, the system works far FAR better than any other method especially trying to read those color shades.

Buy this if you have phosphate issues you need to watch closely BUT expect to watch the special video on how to deal with the reagent packets and for sure you will need to buy the refill packets with your initial purchase to avoid extra shipping charges when you realize they only ship 6 of the packets with the product.

it works great for meBy Dustinon 12/11/2013

Dustin would recommend this product to a friend

I hate all the othe test kits for phos. I like reading numbers and not colors. I dont have any issues with this checker.